Ryan Leak

That decision, that moment, it feels like it's happening in the moment, but it doesn't.

You actually decide long before that offense ever shows up what kind of person you are going to be.

You don't decide forgiveness after the comment.

You don't decide forgiveness after the post, after the email, after the conversation.

No, you decide now what you're going to do later when offense inevitably shows up.

Because if you don't decide ahead of time, offense will decide for you.

Here's the deal.

I'm not just trying to predict the future.

I'm just paying attention to patterns.

My friends, we all know something is going to happen in the world, guaranteed.

whether it be small and personal, loud and public, whether it's something tragic, whether it's a natural disaster, whether it's something political, something that will give us the opportunity to find ourselves on opposing sides of another person.

And we need to decide now how we're going to respond later.

You see, I think you and I have the opportunity

Not to be shocked by what is going to happen over the next year.

You should see it coming a mile away.

It's going to happen.

You should prepare for it now.

And dare I say, you should make allowance for it now.

Decide now how you're going to respond later.

I realize that a lot of people who...